Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 — Section 91

Act Done With Intent to Prevent Child Being Born Alive or to Cause It to Die After Birth

Section 91 punishes doing any act before a child's birth, with the intention of preventing the child from being born alive or of causing it to die after birth, where the act does in fact prevent the child from being born alive or causes it to die after birth — unless the act was done in good faith to save the mother's life. Punishment is imprisonment of either description up to ten years, or fine, or both.

Please note: This page reflects our understanding of the law as of the date it was last reviewed. Parliament, the State Legislatures, and the courts continue to amend and interpret this law, and this page may not yet reflect the most recent change. Please verify the current text of the law independently, and consult a licensed advocate for advice on your own matter, before relying on this page.

Corresponding Provision Under Prior Law

Verified against the National Crime Records Bureau's official BNS–IPC concordance (Sankalan Portal), which maps Section 91 to old IPC Section 315, and cross-checked directly against the bare text of both Acts.

BNS section	IPC, 1860 equivalent	Category
91	315	Exact

Comparing the two texts word for word, Section 91 is reproduced without any substantive change from old IPC Section 315.

Quick Reference

Classified as follows in the First Schedule to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), quoted as that Schedule words the entry:

Section 91: punishment — “Imprisonment for 10 years, or fine, or both.” · cognizable or non-cognizable — “Cognizable.” · bailable or non-bailable — “Non-bailable.” · triable by — “Court of Session.”
Compoundable: Not listed in either compounding table of BNSS S.359.

Statutory Text (Verbatim)

Whoever before the birth of any child does any act with the intention of thereby preventing that child from being born alive or causing it to die after its birth, and does by such act prevent that child from being born alive, or causes it to die after its birth, shall, if such act be not caused in good faith for the purpose of saving the life of the mother, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, or with fine, or with both.

Source: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act No. 45 of 2023), as published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary.

Explanation & Illustration (Lexovia's Commentary — Not Statutory Text)

Act intended to prevent live birth or cause death after birth

Explanation (Lexovia's Commentary)

Section 91 targets acts done before a child's birth, with the specific intention of either preventing the child from being born alive, or causing it to die after birth. Both the intention and the actual result (the prevention of live birth, or the death after birth) must be present for the offence to be made out. A built-in exception removes liability where the act was done in good faith for the purpose of saving the mother's life — that good-faith, life-saving exception forms part of the offence's own definition, not a separate general exception.

Illustration (Lexovia's Own Example)

A, shortly before the expected birth of Z's child, does an act with the intention of preventing that child from being born alive, not in good faith to save Z's life, and the child is in fact not born alive as a result. A is liable under Section 91.

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Related / Cross-Referenced Sections

FAQs

Is an act done to save the mother's life punishable under Section 91?

No. The section applies only where the act is not caused in good faith for the purpose of saving the life of the mother. An act done in good faith for that purpose falls outside the offence.

Does the offence require the child to actually die, or not be born alive?

Yes. Both the intention and the actual result must be present — the act must in fact prevent the child from being born alive, or cause it to die after birth, not merely be intended to.

Is this offence bailable?

No. Per the BNSS First Schedule, it is non-bailable, cognizable, and triable by the Court of Session.